The bilingual/bicultural entertainment destination for Latinos in the US, announces eight new originals to super-serve its audience beyond language. The new line-up delivers bilingual/bicultural star power with Mario Lopez, Oscar De La Hoya, Wilmer Valderrama, Ricardo Laguna and Dulce Maria at the helm of multiple docu-realities. The network casts acculturated Hispanic Millennials to star in a variety of formats including “Culture Swap,” “Latino Boot Camp” and “From Chongas to Reinas,” in the style of MTV’s “From Gs to Gents.” Each week, Latino personalities and comedians tackle pop culture, entertainment and celebrity gossip on new topical series “The Chisme Club.” The network also confirmed that it will record an “Unplugged” with urban superstar duo Wisin y Yandel, and produce more “Making of the Video” specials from the most highly-anticipated Latino-driven music videos of the year. Tr3s will also coproduce its third novela “Ultimo Ano” with sister-net MTV Latin America; and has green lit more seasons of fan-favorites including “The Ricardo Laguna Project,” “Quiero Mis Quinces,” “Quiero Mi Boda” and “Quiero Mi Baby.”

The network also confirmed that it will record an “Unplugged” with urban superstar duo Wisin y Yandel

“I’m thrilled to be working with Tr3s in an area I’m so passionate about!” said Mario Lopez. “I’m very excited to be working with Mario and Tr3s on this project. We want fans to get an inside look at a fighter’s life as he negotiates, trains, and mentally prepares to step into the ring on fight night. Golden Boy Promotions is extremely happy be able to showcase some of our best fighters on the new show,” said Oscar De La Hoya.

creator of the Hispanic Blog with Mario Lopez on the set of EXTRA

“I am thrilled to embark in The Ricardo Laguna Project’s second chapter at Tr3s; and even more proud to join the networks agenda in diversity and cultural alignment for the new generation of Latinos,” said Wilmer Valderrama. “We continue to increase the number of original productions year-over-year. This original content directly speaks to and authentically reflects our bilingual/bicultural audience,’ said Jose Tillan, GM & EVP of Tr3s. “By evolving signature franchises and introducing new formats, we continue to position Tr3s as a leading content provider for this unique audience.”

Executive Producers Mario Lopez and Wilmer Valderrama bring their behind-the-scenes production chops to “The Golden Boys” and season two of “The Ricardo Laguna Project,” respectively. “The Golden Boys,” produced by 51 Minds, is a half hour show that tracks the legendary Oscar De La Hoya as he trains, promotes and mentors three up and coming fighters on the verge of the world stage. The half-hour freshman series “The Ricardo Laguna Project” returns for a second season of more wild and amusing antics from the Mexican-American BMX pro & his bicultural family in Las Vegas. Produced by RelativityREAL, season two will make its debut in fall 2012.

Three new realities star acculturated Hispanic Millennials. Under the production of 51 Minds, “Latino Boot Camp” will connect young Latinos to their roots through an eye-opening encounter with their ancestors in Latin America, and in the female-driven competition “From Chongas to Reinas” rough Latinas are transformed into well-mannered queens, with plenty of cattiness and drama in between. The new comedic series “Culture Swap,” produced by RelativityREALL, stars two young adults (one Latino) with very different cultural backgrounds that switch lives for a week of exposure to another world.

After achieving ultimate stardom in Latin America with a booming career in music, film and television, social media magnet Dulce Maria has her eyes set on conquering the US. “The Dulce Maria Show” follows the triple-threat’s departure from her beloved family and fans, to new-found independence, a new language and a new culture in Hollywood. Under the production of Ennovva, the new show is set to premier fall 2012.

The new suspense thriller novela “Ultimo Ano” is set in the world of adolescence, and driven by a conniving foreign exchange student who tries to deceive and manipulate the lives of his new host family and friends. The co-production with MTV Latin America introduces a first-ever initiative uniting network writers and researchers from Population Media Center (PMC) to produce entertainment-education content, where characters will be developed to evolve into role models for the audience, encouraging the adoption of healthier behaviors to benefit individuals and their societies. Series is produced by Argos Productions and set for spring 2013.

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The winner will be announced on Tr3s on June 10 on the rebroadcast subtitled in Spanish of the 2012 MTV Movie Awards that MTV will broadcast live on June 3. Between now and June 2, viewers will be able to vote online for this year’s Best Latino Actor at movieawards.tr3s.com. In 2011, film fans selected actress Alexa Vega as Best Latino Actor for her role in the comedy “From Prada to Nada.” Last year it was Alexys Nycole Sánchez who stole the show at the 2011 MTV Movie Awards by winning an award for her classic line “I want to get chocolate wasted” in last year’s comedy “Grown Ups.” The child actress, who acted alongside Hollywood heavyweights Salma Hayek, Adam Sandler and Chris Rock, was presented the “Best Line From A Movie” award by Cameron Díaz.

“First of all I want to thank my friends, my family and my fans for voting for me,” the four-year-old said like a grown up herself. “I want to thank Debbie my manager for doing all the hard work she has done and most of all I want to thank God.” In the film, Sánchez plays Becky Feder, the daughter of Salma Hayek’s character Roxanne Chase-Feder. “I want to thank all the people from “Grown Ups” for letting me in the movie,” Sánchez added. “You are so fun! And I want to get chocolate wasted!” Meanwhile, Eva Mendes and Saturday Night Live actor Jason Sudeikis kicked off the show with a short spoof imitating scenes from two major blockbusters: “The Hangover” and “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.”

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Director Patricia Riggen Talks “Girl In Progress”

Patricia Riggen is a rarity in Hollywood. She is one of the few Latina directors that has achieved success in an industry dominated by white males. Riggen, who was born and raised in Mexico, on Friday will release her latest movie “Girl in Progress,” starring Eva Mendes, a movie that she says was difficult to get off the ground.

“Movies with Latina leads are not something that this town is interested in,” Riggen said. “They don’t really make them, they’re hard to make.” “Girl in Progress” highlights a frayed relationship between a single mother (Eva Mendes) and her teenage daughter (Cierra Ramírez.) “The movie is about her and her struggles as a young mom, as a young woman herself trying to find her place,” Riggen explained.

Eva Mendes and Cierra Ramirez Talk “Girl In Progress”

“Being a Mexican woman, it’s really hard because people don’t believe in you,” Riggen told Fox News Latino. “Then you don’t believe in yourself, it’s a whole psychological thing that we have but I think it’s changing.”

The director praised Mendes on being a strong Latina actress who fit the role perfectly. “[She] did an amazing job,” Riggen said. “She had to have very specific things, she was more like an American.” There was a short list of actresses considered for the lead role, but Mendes was the ideal candidate, the director said. In this role, we see Mendes portraying a gritty, unpolished character that Riggen said “is a real, beautiful, flawed human being.”

“It is a wonderful new side of Eva we haven’t seen,” said Riggen.

The difficulties between mother-daughter relationships are a universal story, but Riggen hopes that the fact that the characters are Latino won’t dissuade the general audience from seeing it. “There are two things we have right here,” she said. “It’s female and it’s Latin, and if we show that we care about these movies they will get made more often.” “Female directors will have more chances because it’s tough,” she added.

Riggen says that African-American moviegoers have achieved something that Latinos should strive for. “The black audience has managed to create an industry for themselves,” Riggen said. “They did it and it’s awesome and they now have the ability to have a budget for their films and have a constant flow of films.” The director says it’s now the audience’s turn to go to the box office and show that Latinos can open movies.

Miguel Cotto: “I don’t need anyone else to believe in me – then me. I believe in myself. I work believing in my work. Believing in all I have to beat Mayweather on May 5 and that’s the thing that’s going to happen on Saturday.”

FNL: I’m curious, how are you going to beat him?

Miguel Cotto training camp

Cotto: “My game plan is putting practice, putting in all the hard-work, all of the plans from my trainer Pedro designed for this fight, and that’s the way to beat Mayweather on Saturday.

FNL: Now, you’ve got a secret weapon in your corner, Former Cuban national trainer Pedro Diaz, talk about what makes him so good and how he helps you?

Cotto: “The way he worked with me, the way he make me work everyday, the way he came everyday to the gym with the best he can, trying to take out of me the best I can, he’s the best thing I’ve had in my career.”

FNL: If you win this fight, how likely is it that we will see a second round of you vs Manny Pacquaio?

LAS VEGAS – NOVEMBER 13: Manny Pacquiao (L) and WBO welterweight champion Miguel Cotto (R) pose during the weigh-in for their bout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on November 13, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Pacquiao and Cotto will meet in a WBO welterweight title fight at the MGM Grand on November 14. Pacquiao weighed in at 144 pounds and Cotto weighed in at 145 pounds. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)

Cotto: “I’m just focused on this fight, I don’t talk about anything else until the next fight.”

FNL: Do you think about your Puerto Rican pride, does it affect you at all before a fight?

Miguel Cotto and Pedro Diaz in Training Camp

Cotto: “I’m a Puerto Rican. I think a lot about my Puerto Rican hertiage, the Puerto Rican people, but I’m coming alone into the ring on Saturday night and I’m going to do my best for all the Puerto Rican fans.”

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Grace (Eva Mendes) is a single mom. She is too busy juggling work, bills, and and relationships, to give her daughter, Ansiedad (Cierra Ramirez) the attention she desperately needs. When Ansiedad’s English teacher, Ms. Armstrong (Patricia Arquette), introduces her students to classic coming-of-age stories, Ansiedad is inspired to skip adolescence and jump-start her life without mom. While Grace becomes preoccupied with the increasing affections of her co-worker (Eugenio Derbez), Ansiedad enlists the help of her loyal friend, Tavita (Raini Rodriguez), to plot her shortcut to “adulthood”. But as her misguided plan unravels, Ansiedad and Grace must learn that sometimes growing-up means acting your age.

Dove Worldview:

Here is a movie which illustrates that change is possible for anyone who truly wants it. A teenager named Ansiedad lives with her mother Grace, and their relationship is a bit rocky, mainly due to the fact that Grace is having an affair with a married man, works as a waitress at a diner, and is hardly ever home. Yet Ansiedad’s love for her mother is clearly seen when she goes into her mom’s bedroom after Grace gets home late and she lovingly removes her shoes while she sleeps.

When Ansiedad hears her teacher mentioning “coming of age” and “rites of passage” in her class at school, she decides it is time she goes from being a very good student to a time of rebellion. She says, “Being a kid is stupid and I’m moving on.” However, she moves on with some very bad decisions. She sets her goals on hanging out with “bad girls”, ditching her overweight but kind best friend, ignoring her school work, drinking and “maybe” doing drugs. Lastly, she plans on losing her virginity. She even sets her eyes on the guy she wants it to happen with.

Obviously these are themes which are realistically handled in this film yet there is a strong change in the characters by movie’s end, including both Grace and Ansiedad, who “grow up” and form a bond. Without spoiling the ending, Ansiedad learns that being an adult means being responsible and Grace remembers her responsibilities as well. The redemptive theme is strong in this one.

Parents should watch this film with their kids and discuss the various decisions the characters make. Due to the sophisticated themes we are recommending this movie for ages twelve plus. “Girl in Progress” is a film you and your family will care about! And it should be utilized as a teaching tool in making decisions and dealing with consequences. This one is Dove “Family-Approved”. “Girl in Progress” is just that, a story about progress!

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2012 AND 2013 NOMINATION: THE HISPANIC BLOG/JESSICA MARIE GUTIERREZ FOR THE MOBILIZER AWARD

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